The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1887-02-08
BuFFALO,s PLIGHT
II War with CANADA Occurs She Would DO
1 1854 Detcneeless, @


1 iIs Dctcnseless. a.
BUFFALO, Feb. Tho result OF the talk
Of possible trouble with Canada and the
mother country has been in this part Of
the country TO cause people to turn with
anxious concern TO examine tho Niagara
frontier delonses. A correspondent to.
day Visited the Notifications exciting and
camo to the conclusion tina. there wsa
very little left that could serve to stop any
determined iorco from working tho de-
slruclion OF this city. Fort Porter is located
on tho high ground overlooking this end
Of Lake Erie and the Niagara river. II Ia
now q fort in little moro than nGmo. The
Notifications constitute pictunque ruin,
having, since tho Canadian guns were
turned on II during tho Fenian raid OF
1865, received little or no attention. There
arc not even carthwotkg worthy OF tho
name. The buildinga include two aots Of
company quarters, six oiliccfs' quarters,
tho commanding 0lIlcera quarteru and a
guard house, hospital and magazine. The
larger buildings arc wood atruCtures and
are in the last throea OF dissolution. Tho
fort 10 gsrrlsoned by Companies Q and D
OF tho Twenty.third Regiment United
States Infantry. '
Tho headquarters OF tho regiment aro at
Fort Wayne, Detroit, where four compan.
LED are quartered In command Of Colonel
Henry NJ. Black. Other companies aro at
Forts Mackinsc and Brady. Tho detach.
ment al Fort Porter Ia in command Of
Mnjor Samuel Oyenahine. Company G
has SO men and Company D 81. The gar.
rison contains "a men al told. They have
stand OF 100 guns and less than two tons
OF ammunition Of all kinds. The ord.
nance contests OF two bragg, 12.pound,
Bmooth.boto Napoleon, guns and two
three-inch, siS.pound rilleu. These guna
could aweop tho Canada ahors, but as the
shot.tower has been torn down they would
not cause very much destruction. The
Government will build new fort The
coming season and considerable stone l.
now on the aground.
| On the Canada shore opposite there arc
no Notifications. The Canadian Govern.
ment maintalns feeble militia company
which is attached to the battalion O. Ham.
iltou. Up the lake mila or two arc the
mosa.covered ruins Of old Fort Erie. Fort
Niagara is at the mouth Of tho Niagara
river, overlooking Lake Ontario. Here
are located two companies OF the Twelfth
Regiment United STATED Infantry, under
command Of Major Penrosc. They have
the 1ame strength Of the garrison at Fort
Porter and their ordinance Is tho zane.
Tho fort Is On old walled encloaure Of the
block house pattern. Tho barracks are Of
brick, and were rebuilt by the Govern.
ment last season. Hero General John
Morgan Was confined during the war. On
tho oppoaite point ia the old castle called
Fort MassaaBugua. These fortifcat;one
were long aimee abandoned, and tho Brit.
ish guns have been taken away.
The only gunboat on the lower lakes is
tho Michigan, q rotten old tub carrying
four guns. Naval officers ngroe tina. one
properly directed shot would sink her
The Michigan'a Headquarters arc at Erie
Pa. Buffalo has two regiments Of the
Nationa! GuRrd-tho Ssventy-iourth and
Sixth.tiith. The former has q strength Of
$50 and tho latter Of $50. They hays both
Gubntautial arsenals, but neither was con.
s:ructed for defense. The have each
stands OF 500 rifles Of so calibar. The Sew.
enth Battery was disbandod lately and the
four three-inch rifles and gattling guns
wore removed by the State authorities to
New York. Other separate companies OF
this (the Eighth battalion are located at
Niagara Falls, jamestown, Rochester,
Penn Yam and Elmira. The National
Guard strength Of this part Of Canada in
cludes o battalion at Hamilton and the
Qleen's Own Regiment q! Toronto.
Military men here agree that the Safety
Of Buffalo would lie in Immediately land
ing force On the Canadian band OF the
Niagara river. A detachment would need
to BIO cent on nhort notice to blow up the
locks in the Weiland Canal. BY this
means gunboats could not get above Lake
Ontario. No military preparations have
been made here yet, and there is no ex-
pectation Of trouble with Canada. The
same pacific idea prevails in this part Of
Canada.